Training Day (teen titans)

[Shockwave]

As Nightwing reentered the training room and remarked about Gwen and Steph's short exchange of words, Gwen took a step back and pointed to the Spoiler with a grin, mouthing: It was all her!! Her teeth flashed in the smile, and left Gwen to shrug her shoulders, not knowing exactly what to say. The grey orbs glanced at Steph, who still sat on the bench.

Gwen Stratford cracked her knuckles nonchalantly and relaxed her facial muscles as she stood, awaiting the assignment from Nightwing with the bo staff. She had merely used a metal pole before in amateur, unexperienced combat. Maybe that was what a bo staff was, afterall?

"Do you know any form of fighting whatsoever?"

Shockwave sent her gaze from Nightwing asking her a question to the cieling. She imagined herself kicking powerfully and high, sending masked enemies to their graves. Rapid punches faster than the speed of sound collided with the mens' faces, and Gwen twisted her abdomen to prep for a huge, roundhouse kick, which left all her opponents on the ground. She laughed loudly and smacked her chest in victory.

"Would it be okay if I'm somewhat unexperienced with the wonders of hand-to-hand combat?" Shockwave asked tongue-in-cheek, slightly cracking her crooked smile. She stared down at Nightwing curiously, seeing if he would have enough patience to deal with such a rookie like Gwen.

[whiteraven]

"That depends," An earie voice echoed around the room. "How fast can you learn?"

There was a slight pop and no small amount of quickly dissipating black smoke, and Raven stood in the training room. She had caught Nightwing's nod and would take time to explore Shockwave's powers when Nightwing was done with her. In the meantime she turned to Spoiler.

It was a well known fact that the girl was a great fighter, had even been Robin for a while, Raven didn't doubt the girl's physique, but as far as she knew Steph had no shields against a telepathic attack. Just to clear it up she asked the girl on the bench,

"Have you ever trained against a powerful Telepath before?"

[Dick Grayson]

Nightwing stood up slowly after Raven had made her entrance. She had locked onto Stephanie, which was perfect since the woman wasn't the strongest willed person to have ever donned a cape. He nodded in approval before crossing his arms and raising an eyebrow as he turned to Shockwave. It was just as he feared, she had no combatant training. But at least she wasn't tainted by previous instruction. He was silent for a minute or two as he looked down at the young woman. He took a few steps closer to her and puffed out his chest.

"Hit me", he directed. "Hard" , he added.

He might as well see what kind of a wallop she packed.

[Shockwave]

As Raven made her entrance into the room, Gwen felt her eyes beckoned to the cloaked woman. Her ashen eyes stared at Raven curiously. Everyone knew the wondrous yet massive power Raven beheld. She nearly felt as if her simple stare, even if pointed at Stephanie, made Gwen feel as if she were being watched. But it was not uncomfortable, like she assumed it would be. Hopefully Raven would seek something in Gwen as well. She raised her hand and muttered a quiet "Hi." So Gwen wouldn't be too disturbing for the quiet, wise voice that came from Raven.

But her gaze immediately set onto Nightwing when he ordered her to hit him. Shockwave quirked an eyebrow and pulled her shoulders up to her head, clearly showing a sign of uneasiness in the language of body. She stared at him, a little taken aback. Hit him? She felt her palms moisten. I guess this time was going to come eventually. Stop acting so surprised. She told herself with a stern voice.

After Gwen took in a long, deep sigh, and closed her eyes, she focused herself. In most cases, Gwen would have got out of this punch by saying something mildly amusing and trying to change the subject. But she wanted this. And obviously enough, if she had no idea what she was doing, the veteran heroes would help her. They wouldn't have made an effort to train if they didn't see potential, right? Time was wasting; she felt as if she didn't make a move, the time would pass to show what she has. Gwen wasn't going to let another opportune moment fall from her idle fingertips.

Shockwave opened her eyes, a determined look plastered onto her face. Her eyebrows narrowed-- she felt a slight surge of electricity flow from her palms which were currently clenched. She raised her fists up towards her face, much like a boxer would. She began shifting from the balls of each foot; she looked pretty ridiculous due to the fact she had little to no skill at all. She zoned in on the chest of Nightwing's costume as if that were the only thing she could see. Gwen bit her lip and used her thumbs to lightly press onto her middle fingers, cracking the knuckles. She took her left fist and jabbed at his chest as quick as she could, which followed by a punch right below his ribcage until a jolt of pain followed down the small bone in her wrist, flooding to hands.

"Bwaah, oww!" Gwen hollered loudly, reverberating back from the punches, taking the brunt of the attack as she wobbled in disorientation. "That was a cheap trick! I should have known this was a test!" Gwen assumed it was the man's extremely tight bod that felt like concrete to her small hands. She stared wide-eyed at them and rubbed them lovingly; however, loud crackling sounds were heard right from her palms. Wait-- Had the pain not been from Nightwing's chest after all? Her ashen eyes widened in a certain curiosity and awe, she held up her limp hand only to see slight sparks emitting from her fingertips.

"Did... did you feel that??" She pursed her lips and stared at Nightwing in question. Maybe she was the only one who received feedback from the blow.

[Spoiler]

Stephanie giggled as Nightwing returned and made his snide little comment about how cute he was. She couldn't much contain herself when she saw how Gwen had turned a deep crimson. The situation was classic, in her opinion. But then the hooded woman had addressed her.

"Hey! I see you're going with the whole cloak and cape thing! Great look!" , she said with a broad grin. Stephanie wore a similar hood herself.

Her smiled dropped like a dead fly though when Raven asked if she had ever trained in the ways of telepathy. She hadn't. And everyone probably knew that.

"Can't say that I have..", she said with a nervous laugh as she rubbed the back of her neck.

[whiteraven]

Raven watched through hard eyes that conveyed nothing as the girl first complemented her costume, and then realized what Raven was there for. Dick's files had said much the same on Spoiler's mental training, but Raven chose to check anyway.

She felt no small amount of unsuritiy and some anxiety coming from the girl, but Raven ignored it. Now was as a good a time as ever for Steph to learn how to protect her mind.

Raven nodded at the girl's answer and sat down on the bench by the hero. Letting her hood slip off her head, she said softly,

"Your mind is filled with memories, dreams, secrets and fears that can be used against you. It is the doorway to the rest of your body, if someone has control of your mind, they control everything else."

To proove her point she let her soul self enter Steph's mind. Being exceadingly careful not to trespass into the girl's personal thoughts, Raven made the hero's hand start twitching involuntarily.

Returning to herself, Raven told Spoiler,

"I want you to imagine your mind being surrounded by a huge shield made of whatever you think is strongest. Make it so tight that I can't break through to get into your thoughts. Concentrate."

Raven waited patiently. If Spoiler was really as good as Tim had said, she had no doubt Steph would be set in no time. Raven could easily tell the girl had guts and smarts, better than some she knew could say.

[Batgirl]

Just then Batgirl walked in and saw both Spoiler and Shockwave training with Nightwing and Raven. She then said "hey guys. Anyone interested in a little sparring practice? Raven when you're finished with Steph, would you be willing to try whatever it is you're doing with her on me? Who knows, someday I might need it.[/color]

[whiteraven]

Raven looked up when another new Titan entered the room. The costume wasn't hard to recognise, the bat clan seemed to be half the hero community these days. Everyone had a connection to Gothem somehow.

She nodded to the girl's question and motioned her over. Without bothering Steph she asked in a low voice,

"I suppose you have never trained with a telepath either?"

[Batgirl]

"You're right, Raven, I haven't, however, like Batman, I'll do whatever and go wherever it takes (short of taking another person's life unneededly) to improve my skills and techniques. I can't settle for being second-rate. Being second-rate is just flat unacceptable." [/b]Batgirl whispered back to her soon-to-be trainer, Raven.

[whiteraven]

"Not a trainer," Raven answered, having inadverdently read Cassandra's mind. "Comrade. No matter how long I've managed to stick around, I'm still only 17."

She shook her head to herself, for someone who practically ran the hero community, she found everyone from the bat clan sadly lacking in the mind department.

"I want you to imagine a wall around your mind," She said to Batgirl, just as she had told Steph. "Out of the strongest thing you can imagine, so strong and tight I can't get into your mind."

[Shockwave]

Even though Gwen was slightly recuperating from the shock, she had also tuned into Raven's explanations, cuing Shockwave to close her eyes and attempt what Raven was instructing. She imagined her wall as high as a palm tree. An army of palm trees. They each stood by each other so Gwen couldn't see the ocean behind them. Their leaves were so green that she winced due to their glare. Picking up a large rock that stood at the beach, she threw it at the palm tree wall, only to have it fly back towards her. She dodged it-- not like she would have dodged that in the real world, but it was her mind.

Once the young woman realized that she had been focusing so hard on her wall that Gwen found herself actually wincing to protect her eyes from the ultra-vivid green. Her ashen eyes blinked for a moment, wondering if she had lost her protected mind when she opened her eyes.

[whiteraven]

Raven pretended not to notice when Shockwave tried the exercise as well, but something that big happening in such an untrained mind could hardly be hidden. She tracked what happen in Gwen's mind, interested. Never in all her many years had she ever come across someone who made a wall of palm trees. Ever.

Tentatively, not wishing to hurt the girl, she sent her soul self out, sweeping around the wall of shrubbery. It was strongly made for a first timer, though rash. The girl would need to learn dicipline else Raven would find it too easy to break through.

Withdrawing, Raven returned to her body and looked straight at Gwen with the stare she was famous for. That empty, emotionless gaze that nobody could return for long without becoming overly uncomfertable.

[Batgirl]

Upon getting her instructions from Raven, Batgirl imagined her mind with a 10'ft high wall of ultra-thick steel mesh surrounding it. She then thought " This ought to work, it's thick and durable but very sturdy"She then thought"Okay, Raven, try to get through this"[/i][/b]

[whiteraven]

Raven got the thought process from Bat-girl and dropped her stare in order to give the girl her attention. Closing her eyes she sent her soul self into Cassandra's mind. The girl had chosen a more conventional path, though by no means less good.

The wall was strong and the mesh would work as a filter of sorts. She could feel emotions yet, though. Determination above all, she could tell, Bat girl was going to keep working at this till she had it right.

How very like her mentor. Raven nodded, it was a good wall, thought would defanitly be improved on throughout the years. she said nothing when she returned to herself. For beginners they had both done well. Steph had said nothing yet, and Raven looked to her.

[Dick Grayson]

Nightwing watched as Raven spoke to the girls. She was really better at this kind of thing than she would ever let on. He looked down at his chest, where Shockwave had tried to deliver a punch. It hadn't hurt, it didn't pack much of a sting into his chest the way others did. But there was a static kind of electric discomfort building in his chest. Something had happened, but not an ordinary punch.

As he continued to stand and watch, the discomfort in his chest grew and spread. He sat on the tiny bench and clutched at his chest. This would hopefully pass soon.